Library Column - April 16 2005
By Betty-Kay Murray Children's Librarian
Peterborough Public Library
Books for Reluctant Readers
Back in February I wrote about books for boys, especially those who are reluctant
readers. In today's column I have some more suggestions, especially for boys
who are in the middle grades, from approximately grades 3-7.
Studies show that boys are more likely to read books that place action ahead
of emotion. Many boys like books that are slightly subversive and that are ghoulish
or gross and humourous. Silliness is a quality that can't be overdone in many
books that appeal to boys and reluctant readers.
Roddy Doyle, better known for his adult fiction, has applied his Irish wit to
a series of books about the Mack family. The Meanwhile Adventures chronicles
the adventures of Rover, the dog, and the Mack children who are trying to rescue
Mister Mack who was arrested for supposedly robbing a bank. At the same time
they have to find their mother who is running around the world in an attempt
to break a Guinness world record.
The Help! I'm Trapped series by Todd Strasser appeals to reluctant readers.
Jake, the main character, switches bodies with other unlikely people and experiences
their lives. Along the way are misadventures, jokes and gross-outs. The short
chapters leave the reader hanging and help draw the reader into the action of
the story.
For boys who like sports there is the Wolfbay Wings series by Bruce Brooks.
Each of the books in this series focuses on one individual player on the Wolfbay
Wings hockey team. These are humorous, full of action hockey stories; with a
light look at some of the issues that boys face.
The Watsons go to Birmingham - 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis is an award-winning
book that appeals with its broad humour. The Watsons are an African American
family living in Flint Michigan. The everyday adventures of his family are chronicled
in chapters that read somewhat like Bill Cosby sketches. The tone of the novel
changes near the end when the family travels to Alabama to see their grandmother
at a time when racial tensions are high. Although this is a very funny book,
there is a vein of seriousness that gives it much more of a punch.
Harry Potter has done much to promote reading. For those who have read the Harry
Potter books and would like to read more fantasy I would recommend Lloyd Alexander's
Prydain Chronicles. The first of this series is The Book of Three. Taran, an
assistant pig-keeper longs to be a hero and to save the Kingdom of Prydain from
evil. Alexander chronicles his adventures with a wonderful cheeky sense of humour.
Since its publication forty years ago, this book has become a modern classic.
Another avenue of reading for boys are nonfiction books. Often a child who is
interested in amassing facts in a particular subject area or is fascinated by
practical hands-on activities has no interest in following the plotline of a
fiction book. It's really important that a child's interests be taken into account
when choosing reading material. It will do nothing to reinforce the reading
habit if a child feels that you only read because it is good for you. Clue into
his interests and raid the nonfiction section. Kids that are really into a subject
will be ready to get into the more meaty books in the adult nonfiction section
as well.